


On Sandgem's Shores

by fightforyourwrite



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Diamond & Pearl & Platinum | Pokemon Diamond Pearl Platinum Versions
Genre: Beaches, F/M, Walks On The Beach
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-07
Updated: 2016-09-07
Packaged: 2018-08-13 14:06:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7979443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fightforyourwrite/pseuds/fightforyourwrite
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"The winds blows at my scarf and hair, sending that soothing salty scent into my nose. It’s a cold breeze, but us Sinnoh natives are used to it. Part of me feels like I can spend forever here. With the beach, with Lucas, with anything."</p><p>Lucas shows Dawn the beach.</p>
            </blockquote>





	On Sandgem's Shores

When I was 9, my mother had to take a day-trip to Jubilife City to perform some necessary errands common to the average Top Coordinator. Because Barry’s family was vacationing in Johto for month and couldn’t keep an eye on me, mother took me with her that day. 

It was one of the most riveting days of my elementary life. I hadn’t ever travelled beyond the lines of our town’s boundaries, or ever took a break from the close-knit community I had immersed myself in for my entire existence. 

I remember riding in the car with my mother on that day. She played a recording of an old piano sonata with a name that I can’t remember while I kept my eyes glued on the car window. The moving scenery blurred from grey, to green, to blue. I absorbed every inch of the outside world that I could. 

It only strikes me now that the little trip to Jubilife City all those years ago was the farthest I had ever travelled outside of Twinleaf Town. I didn’t even travel to the north end of the city that day. I didn’t find a need to at the time.

I could recall on that day, as mother drove us through Sandgem, we spent a few moments passing by the famous beach. My mind perked up at the sight of the water; the waves that crashed against the rocky shores and eroded every stone into grains of sand stuck into the mind the second I saw them. 

I feel like I should’ve asked my mother to stop. We had time to spare before needing to arrive at Jubilife anyway. It’s only now when I wonder why I didn’t ask.

When I think about that particular memory and study it from every angle, it doesn’t surprise me that I accepted Lucas’s offer to show me the beach as instantly as I did. 

The excited exclamation of the word  _ ‘Yes!’ _ left my mouth more loudly than I thought it would. I regret it as quickly as I said it. I feel the need to clear my throat and rephrase my words. 

“I mean, yes please. If you would, Lucas. That’d be great.”

He takes a second or two to adjust to the abruptness of my answer after he asks, but when he regains himself, a dignified smile comes upon his face and he says: 

“Okay. Follow me then. This way.” 

Lucas adjusts the hat on his head and proceeds to lead me away from the lab. I follow closely as we make our way through the little town.

It’s fascinating to see the neighbouring town up close. All my life, Sandgem had been a quick walk away, but I never took it upon myself to come and see it. Maybe I had been too busy with matters of my own to think about anything else. Maybe I had been too busy taking in the life of one town to try out another. 

We don’t get too far before Lucas speaks up again. “That’s my house, by the way,” Lucas explains to me quickly. He points over to a place near the south end of the town as we start to pass it. 

I nod my head and hum, he seems to accept that as an answer for now. 

I glance over to Lucas’s house and notice that it’s not too different from the houses I’ve seen in Twinleaf. I notice that the houses are built of same material; aged bricks and worn wood, cloudy, unpolished glass in the window frames, chimneys that appear to have gone through decades of use. 

I’ve been told that with the exception of Jubilife, most of the buildings in Western Sinnoh were constructed over 70 years ago. Most of them were simple cottages that housed working class people, miners or artists, it didn’t matter who. The living costs were cheap and so were the homes, so people rarely ever moved out of the homes they were brought up in. They were usually passed down from one aging generation to the next.

Lucas’s house looks similar to mine; the stone looks older than the both of us combined, and the paint job has shown obvious effects of being exposed to Sinnoh’s weather.

For a few moments, me and Lucas walk in silence. He leads me through a small forest of trees until we get to a clearing. It’s only then when I realize that the ground beneath our feet has turned from concrete, to gravel, to sand. 

I look ahead and see the ocean for the first time in my life. Beige sand goes on for meters and breaks into a pale, cloudy horizon. Ahead, all I see it water, sky, and grey clouds. 

I start walking faster, to the point where Lucas starts dragging behind just slightly. 

The wind of the sea blows a salty scent into my face to let me inhale the smell of the ocean. The waves crash against the sand and fill my ears with one of the most soothing noises I have ever heard. It hits rocks near the edges of the beach and blows a spray of cold mist into the air. 

The water in Lake Verity never makes a sound like the ocean does, or blows a salty, invigorating scent towards the nearest town.

I think it’s amazing. There’s a look of wonder on my face as I look around. I do anything I can to take in every inch of the ocean. 

“So this is it,” I hear Lucas say. 

I turn my head towards him. He has an honest smile on his face and a relaxed demeanor in his eyes as he glances around. I get the sense that he has been here plenty of times before, but the feeling of walking onto the sand has yet to start feeling old to him. 

“Sandgem’s beach,” Lucas continues. He turns to me, “You like it?” 

“I love it.” 

When I tell him my elated answer, Lucas’s grin carries on. He places a hand on his red hunter cap in anticipation of another gust of wind. His white scarf flows freely in the breeze. 

My eyes dart around swiftly and spot something peculiar sitting on the shore, meters away from the graze of the ocean. 

“What’s that?” I say to Lucas as I point over. 

“What’s what?” 

“That over there.”

It’s a boat. It’s not big, nor is it small. I recognize it from books and magazines I’ve skimmed through in the past. It looks like something that could carry a small crew of fisherman across Sinnoh’s chilly waters. 

“Abandoned ship, I guess,” Lucas suggests, shrugging his shoulders. “Stuff washes up here all the time.” 

On instinct, I break into a run and head towards it. 

“Whoa, Dawn! Wait up! You don’t know where that’s been!” I hear Lucas calling behind me. 

I’m not as impulsive as Barry, but the only trait I have that can match that in terms of intensity is how curious I am. I think I’m way too curious for my own good. Sometimes, the temptation to touch something I fixate onto is too hard to resist and I end up acting on pure instinct. 

I get closer to the boat, my boots no doubt leaving deep indents within the sand with every step I take. 

The first thing I do when I get there is extend my hand out and place it against the boat’s wooden hull. The paint is rough to the touch, it’s fading the peeling from place to place. Rust and stains decorate the hull here and there. The vessel looks much bigger up close. 

Behind me, Lucas catches up. When he speaks, I pick up on how winded he sounds. “Whoa…” he starts, pacing his words between tired breaths. It appears that he may not be the best at running. 

“You folks in Twinleaf don’t like to take things slow, don’t you?” 

I shake my head, “No, not really.” I fixate my attention back at the boat, “Think we can climb on?” 

“Why?” Lucas asks. “There’s probably nothing in there.” 

“Well, why not?” I bring up. “You got something better to do?” 

My eyes observe the vessel, looking for ways to bring myself onto it. The boat sits at a slight angle, one side sinking deeper into the sand than the other. I raise my hands up and jump, my hands grasp onto the edge of the boat when I get high enough. 

For a moment, I predict that the boat will give in to my weight and tip over towards me and Lucas. But miraculously, it doesn’t. It stays still as I hang there, my hands grasping the dusty railing. 

It takes a few moments, but with a few swings and some upper body strength, I manage to climb onto empty boat. My feet land on the deck and I am nearly thrown off by the boat’s slanted position. I adjust to the change in due time.  

“Dawn, careful,” Lucas warns. He’s still on the ground. “You don’t know if it’ll break underneath you.”

I look down at the old deck. I give it an experimental hop to test how strong it is even after all this time. It holds underneath my weight. 

Turning to Lucas, I give him a shrug and say, “Seems to be holding up just fine.

I lean over the edge of the slanted boat and offer a hand down to him, “Come on.” 

Lucas’s eyes focus on my hand, then to me. His unsure expression changes to charm. With a small smile, he gives in and reaches his hand out to mine. I hold onto him tightly, refusing to let go until he’s up with me. 

It takes more time than my initial ascent, but soon, Lucas is on the slanted boat deck as well. The vessel doesn’t sway or wobble underneath our weight, which I find oddly assuring. 

Once up, Lucas looks around with a certain kind of wonderment in his eyes. It seems like he hasn’t ever looked at this beach from an angle like this one. 

Standing on an old vessel that’s half-sunken into the Sandgem Beach feels unexpectedly satisfying. I look around the land to take in every inch of the beach that I can see. 

Eventually, me and Lucas find a place on the boat to sit. I believe the back of the boat is called the stern. It’s the stern that faces the sea, so it’s the stern where we will sit. 

The boat may not be parallel to the ground, but Lucas and I find a comfortable spot to rest our feet. We sit down on the stern railing, dangling our legs a few feet above the grains of sand below.

The winds blows at my scarf and hair, sending that soothing salty scent into my nose. It’s a cold breeze, but us Sinnoh natives are used to it. Part of me feels like I can spend forever here. With the beach, with Lucas, with anything. 

“Do you come here often?” I ask Lucas. I turn towards him. 

Lucas’s eyes are focused out on the horizon. He shakes his head, “Not anymore. I used to a lot with my dad. With my grandpa and sister too, but we haven’t gone together in a while.” 

“How long is a while?” I question. 

Lucas takes a beat to think. He lowers his eyes from the view and looks at his hands. They’re clasped together tightly. When he does answer, there’s a certain kind of sadness to his words that I find difficult to ignore. 

“Three years.” 

He keep his gaze down and squeezes his hands together. Soon, he releases them and looks back at me. He gives me a grin as if the last few moments never happened. 

It’s easy to smile back at him, even though mine is not as bright as his. Lucas’s has a very inviting presence. It feels safe to be soft around him. He appears to be nothing more than a person who wants to do good in the world. 

I’m surprised how quickly I’ve grown to be comfortable around him. Though, it’s honestly not that hard to believe that I have in the first place. 

Lucas is a pair of grey eyes that can express anything with ease, a head of dark hair that he doesn’t appear to brush too often, and a bright smile that lights up his entire face. There’s something about his presence that makes me feel assured, a sense of familiarity that feels like the life I’ve lived so far. 

“I’m glad you’re enjoying the beach,” Lucas says, changing the conversation topic. His voice starts to sound more warm. “Can’t believe you’ve lived in Twinleaf all your life but never stepped foot in Sandgem.” 

“Never thought I would,” I respond. “Twinleaf’s a tight community. It’s hard to find your way out of it.”

“You should more often,” Lucas remarks. “It’s a big world out there, but it’s worth going out and seeing.” 

“That’s the goal,” I explain. I look from him and towards the sea. From where we are, there’s nothing but water ahead of us. 

It makes me wonder; how far would one have to travel until they found land again? Would there even be land there at all? 

“I’d love to see what else is out there,” I continue. “You know, I’ve never even been past Mount Coronet. I’d love to see what’s on the other side of it. Would you?”

“Yeah, I’d love to,” Lucas responds. I can sense the fondness in his warm tone. “I’ve never been past it either.”

“So I guess I’ll see you on the other side then?” I figure.

“I guess I will,” Lucas confirms. He looks down and beams. I can envision the idea simply dancing inside of his head like a ball of light ready to shine. 

It’s easy being with him. This simplicity has never left me during my 15 years of life. It’s a simplicity to feel, think, and to dream, is something I thought would leave me the second I stepped foot away from Twinleaf.

Sitting here perched up on the stern of an old boat washed up on Sandgem’s shores, our curiosity bonding us together, suddenly makes me think differently. Sitting here with Lucas makes me think that I might’ve been wrong.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm starting to get into writing character POVs more often. I started with Calem, now here I am with Dawn.
> 
> How did I do here? Which character should I do next?


End file.
